I spent the first five years of my life living outside the city limits of Dayton, Ohio, in my grandparents’ fishing cabin on the Stillwater River. Every one of my mother’s brothers and sisters lived there before us when first married. My mother, the youngest, was the last. Each successive sibling improved the small house. As a child, my mother and her entire family would spend the summers there. A tennis court was installed to keep her two brothers and two sisters entertained.

Eventually my grandmother built a larger house for herself. The tennis court was replaced with a goldfish pond and a small waterfall. It was a magical place for me. I learned to entertain myself, as there was no one close by my age to play with. My grandparents were in the paint and glass business. The business distributed wooden yardsticks inscribed with Delscamp Paint and Glass. My grandmother would split one in half, lengthwise, to create a fishing pole for me. She tied a curtain hook onto a piece of string and attached it to the split yardstick. I fished in the goldfish pond using bread and strips of bacon as bait. I spent hours doing that. I never did catch anything but it never mattered. One year my parents went to the Kentucky Derby and brought me a child sized fishing rod and reel with real hooks. I caught my grandmother’s biggest and most prized goldfish.

Water of any sort always fascinated me. I spent a lot of time at the river fishing with my parents. We used crawdad tails for bait. It was not until I was an adult that I discovered that crawdads and crayfish are the same and edible. I do not remember catching anything but bluegills. We lived “out in the country” until I was 5 and old enough to start school in town.

I did not realize until years later that my criteria for a house had been shaped by those early years. When we found the house in Kennesaw it had everything but water. But there was a small, saucer shaped, cement pond close to the screened porch. Eventually it was uncovered, cleaned and refilled. I clearly remember ordering water lilies from Lilly Ponds Nursery in Maryland. A couple weeks later I received a 6 p.m. call. “Dr. Gilbert, this is your mailman. I have been so concerned because someone has sent you frozen peas. I rushed the container home and put it in my freezer. If it is OK, I will bring it to you.” It was my water lilies. I didn’t have the heart to tell the mailman that the tubers were frozen and therefore destroyed. I wrote Lilly Ponds. They did not believe the story and refused to replace them. There was an USDA plant inspection sticker on the container but in the 1970s, the mailman did not recognize it. Kennesaw was a small country town then.

The pond was not big or deep enough and had no filtration system. After a few weeks the water would turn very green with algae. So this pond was replaced with a new deeper one and a small sand filter. The pond itself was OK but the sand filter clogged up within 48 hours.

Water makes a garden, as these photos show. On the left, the waterfall feeds the pond with sculpture “Bird in Hand” by Marsha Pels. The right is the koi pond behind the Butler House with “Cast from 55” sculpture by Howard Ben Tré.

Next I discovered a koi and pond supply store in Dahlonega. An effective filtration system was installed but it was terribly labor intensive. But the water was clear. The goldfish were replaced with koi. I started with very plain ones and gradually improved the koi collection with more colorful ones.

There was an overhead power line that went over the pond to the house. Frequent lightning strikes led us to bury the line. While we had the backyard torn up we decided to build yet another pond, this time close to the porch so we could see the fish while on the porch. The old pond was removed. An even better and easier filtration system was installed. Finally the koi had a permanent home. They grew very large — several over two feet — and are still in Kennesaw, alive and happy even though I am not there.

We were traveling quite a bit during that time visiting other gardens and arboreta. We observed that almost every great garden had water. On the south edge of our property there was a ravine in an area that had not been cleared or improved. Water from a higher elevation ran down through the ravine creating a meandering path, eventually draining into Butler Creek. So this area was cleared and a series of three ponds were created with a 15-foot waterfall. We used recirculating well water, as Butler Creek was not on our property. This area is one of the most popular sites at the garden now that the plantings have matured. A Japanese-inspired viewing building overlooks the entire site.

When we decided to move to the mountains, one key requirement was water. In Burningtown, Ray Creek originates in the National Forest and runs through our place. It is an endless source of pleasure. I think some ancestor of mine must have been aquatic.

Dr. Bob Gilbert’s articles are being reprinted with the permission of the Franklin Press in Franklin, North Carolina.

Coffin Tree

By Shon Cameron, SGG Head Gardener

On your next visit to the garden come view our Coffin Tree.  It doesn’t have pretty flowers or a heavenly scent like some of our other trees.  What is does have is a very fascinating history and has been used to make incredible works of art for centuries. Taiwania cryptomeriodes is the Latin name of the Coffin Tree and is part of the Cupressaccae family.  It has some very large kin, including the Giant Sequoias of California.

This Evergreen is native to the higher elevations of Taiwan (Formosa).  In its native environment it can reach a maximum height of 260 feet tall and 19 feet or wider making it the largest tree in Asia.  The juvenile stage lasts about 100 years.  When young the leaves are awl shaped with spiky like needles and a blended blue green hue, as the tree ages, the needles become thick and leathery with more of a triangular shape. The growth habit is to have smaller branchlets growing off the main limbs which give it the weeping look.   Our specimen is a perfect example.

Now, that I have covered all the important botanical information, let’s get to the reason for its common name, the Coffin Tree. The wood is soft, durable, rot resistant, has a very pleasant color and a wonderful spicy scent. All that in one tree has made it a favorite for furniture, temple beams, art and you guessed it hand-made coffins.

Come see the wonders of our Coffin Tree and as always feel free to stop and chat with me about this beauty who will eventually be a giant among our trees, however, now it’s just a baby specimen.

Carolina Wren

It was another beautiful, sunny, winter day at SGG on Jan.5, 2012, as I looked for the bird of the month. I was walking on the conifer garden path nearest the entrance driveway. While the gardens have so many beautiful areas, I think I like the conifer section best. The symmetry of conifers makes me smile. The tall ones are majestic while the smaller ones conjure up happy holiday memories. I’m not sure whether I bought my present home because of its style or because of the regal bald cypress in the front yard.

Conifers also attract many birds because of their cone seeds. I was enjoying watching a flock of Carolina chickadees hungrily attack the many cones available to them when I heard the familiar scolding of another bird with the word Carolina in its name—a Carolina wren. “Scolding” is not my creative word choice but a term often used for this bird vocal in field guides. Because the Carolina wren is a bird more often heard than seen, I thought you might like to hear this bird. The great advantage to an online newsletter is the ability to provide links. The following link is from the Cornell Ornithology Labs. Click on the play arrow under the Calls title. First, you will hear the Carolina wren’s song, then its scolding call: http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Carolina_Wren/sounds/ac

Not a pleasant sound, is it? For those of you who don’t speak Carolina Wrenese, please let me translate what this SGG wren was saying to me: “Hey, you over there with the long black bug eyes, SCRAM! You’re on my turf! Me and the missus staked this claim out a year ago, and we ain’t movin’.  You don’t want to make me come out, so just keep walking!”

Now, when I was a neophyte birder and heard my first Carolina wren, I thought that very loud sound must be coming from a very large bird, until the wren popped up into view. He was certainly cocky-looking with his tail feathers giving me the bird world finger, but at only 5.5 inches, hardly threatening. So, I knew the SGG wren’s threat to come out was a big bluff.

Remember the real Wizard of OZ? The little man behind the curtain? That’s the Carolina wren. Now, if you want to play Toto and pull the curtain back, there is a way. When birders want to see a bird that likes to stay hidden, they will use either a human vocal called “pishing” or a simulated digital bird vocal like the one you listened to on the provided link. Pishing involves pursing the lips and making a “pish” sound. This sound will sometimes cause the hidden bird to come into view to investigate what he thinks may be an intruder bird. At this point, I must inject a word of caution. Not all birders embrace these methods of luring birds. One should never employ them during nesting periods. You would not want to endanger a nest by forcing the parent bird to leave the nest unguarded just for your viewing pleasure. If you do decide to use these methods, please use them responsibly.

The Carolina wren is found predominately in the southeast, but will move north and further west in mild winters. Because the Carolina wren is a ground forager, mainly insects, there is a danger in moving to areas that may get a lot of snow in not so mild winters. An entire population of these birds could be wiped out if they can’t get to the ground to forage. These wrens regularly come to my suet feeder, so you could attract them that way. They, male and female, also stake out a territory and stay there as long as the food supply is ample. So, it is highly likely that if you walk the conifer garden path nearest the entrance driveway, you will get a chance to be insulted by an SGG Carolina wren.

We will be conducting training classes for anyone interested in learning about the Garden, the historic Hiram Butler House, the garden sculpture as well as the 3000 or so different varieties of plantings located in the Garden.

Classes begin on Feb 15^th at 10 am and run each Wednesday morning thru March 14^th. Classes will include sessions on the history of the Hiram Butler House and grounds, the 30 pieces of sculpture located around the property and Plant Identification I & II.  Trainees will also learn the policies and procedures used inside the house when greeting guests, selling items from the Gift Shop and selling Garden memberships.

People can sign up online at www.smithgilbertgardens.com or call 770-919-0248 or e-mail Jim Parks at jparks@smithgilbertgardens.com.

This is a great time for our current slate of trained Docents to get a refresher. Things are always changing here at Smith-Gilbert and this is the perfect opportunity to catch up and become current.

Sign up to participate and come and be with us beginning on the 15^th. We look forward to having you.

Sarah Mansfield

Sarah Mansfield is one of our most dependable Docents, always willing to pitch in wherever assistance is needed.  Her latest job is looking after the Hummingbird feeders. In addition, Sarah frequently works in the Hiram Butler House, helps with the Children’s Programs and conducts tours of the Garden.

Sarah was born a Tennessee girl but came to Cobb County at an early age and graduated from Osborne High School. Sarah received her B. S. from UGA, and then taught elementary school in Gwinnett County. She has also worked in the insurance industry as a Certified GA. Life, Accident and Sickness Insurance Agent. In addition to all that, she is certified to teach Conversational English to Adult Internationals.

Sarah is married to Dan (for 44 yrs.), is the mother of two adult children, and in her own words is “waiting patiently for grandchildren.”  Sarah has lots of varied interests including gardening, reading, travel, painting, cooking and following GA Tech sports (she’s forced to as hubby, daughter and son-in- law are all Tech grads. Poor thing!) Sarah is a joy to be around and a real asset to Smith-Gilbert Gardens.

Graham Gold

Graham Gold, our decorator extraordinaire is another of our Volunteers of Note.

Graham was born in London England in the late 1940’s moved to the States as an adult and became a citizen about 20 years ago.  Graham majored in Residential and commercial Design. He studied at the New York School of Interior Design, The Art Institute and at Kennesaw University.

Graham ran his own business in New York for many years and was the Head Designer for close to 10 years for a major corporation here in Atlanta. Graham is now retired and enjoys his volunteer time here at Smith-Gilbert assisting with the Monday Morning Work Group, the Gift Shop and other SGG decorating challenges.

Graham has been married to wife Joann for 37 years, and has two grown children and two grandchildren.

It is a real treat to have Graham and his quick wit with us here at the Garden. We especially appreciate him giving his time and extraordinary talent to decorate the Hiram-Butler House for the Christmas season.

American Crow

by Pat Pepper

I do realize that choosing a crow for the bird of the month in a garden publication is risky. After all, that’s not a scarerobin propped up next to the fence around the SGG vegetable garden.

When I decided to highlight one bird for this column, I had to choose a qualifying factor. I decided to cast away any personal bird prejudices, either for or against a particular species. My qualifier would be a bird that had best captured my interest or imagination while walking around the garden.

On Dec. 2, a beautiful Friday afternoon, I thought I would walk around the grounds for about an hour. I ended up staying for three. It was the best birding day I had ever had at SGG. I racked up a total of 23 species, one being a life bird for me. A life bird is one that you have never seen before. In this case, it was a brown creeper. This bird had eluded me for many years, so I was very excited to have finally found one, but it’s not the bird of the month. Why not?

While I was excited to see the creeper, it was not the bird that captured my imagination. As I was birding on the driveway by the north side of the Hiram Butler house (between the house and Pine Mt. Rd.),  I heard the caw-caw of an American Crow, first one, then three, then many coming from the east and south side of the gardens.

I began to get excited knowing that a mobbing was in progress. A mobbing is a gathering of birds, usually of the same species, for the purpose of ridding the birds’ territory of a predator, usually an owl or a hawk. I focused my binoculars at the top of a large oak tree where the crows were flocking and cawing loudly.

In a few minutes I saw a large red-tailed hawk fly out of the oak tree to land in a tree in the yard of the home just beyond the SGG fence on the north side. The crows were not satisfied with that short move and continued mobbing the red-tail. The red-tail finally cried uncle and flew northward, no match for a “murder” of crows. “Murder” is the name given for a group of crows.

What did it take for these crows to be victorious?  Teamwork, making a lot of noise, and dressing in murderous black. Next time you have to fight city hall, get a pep talk from a murder of crows.

The American Crow is 17-21 inches long and is completely black (including bill and feet) with purplish hues in sunlight. This black coloring protects them from owls, black against the black night, and hawks who think they are shadows. It has a varied diet, including carrion (keeps our streets clean!), and is found all over the U.S in many different habitats. It makes the well-known call, caw-caw. If you hear a crow saying “uh-uh,” you are hearing a fish crow. The fish crow looks almost identical to the American Crow, but is slightly smaller and has that different vocal.

The crow is highly intelligent as evidenced by its use of tools and advanced social behavior. Crows mate for life (only 50% of humans manage that), their offspring stay with their parents until they find a mate—about five years, they enjoy each other’s company and fight fiercely for each other. One could do worse than be a lover of crows (apologies to Robert Frost).

Volunteers are free to work any schedule they desire–one afternoon or morning a week, just one Saturday a month, or Sunday afternoons. If you can’t commit to a specific schedule we always need extra help for special events. The Garden provides training and excellent benefits for our volunteer friends. You will receive a discount on all purchases in the Gift Shop, unlimited access to the Garden, and a special treat in the form of field trips and Volunteer appreciation functions during the year.

If you’re a people person, the staff at the Garden would like to have you as a docent providing tours for groups visiting the Garden. Docents receive extensive training to prepare for leading Garden tours. Training starts on February 15^th, so sign up now!

If leading tours are not your thing, don’t fret. We need volunteers to assist inside the Hiram Butler House greeting guests, selling items from our gift shop, answering questions about the house and grounds, assisting with various administrative tasks and helping with special events.

Please help the Garden continue to provide memorable experiences for our guests by becoming a volunteer. If you are interested  contact Jim Parks, our Volunteer Coordinator at jparks@smithgilbertgardens.com or 770 919 0248. We’d love to have you as a member of the Garden family.

Outside of work Carrie has been a tour docent in her hometown of Bramwell, WV, and conducted tours of historic homes in Savannah.  Among her many interests and talents is her love of cooking. She is a graduate of the Culinary School at the Greenbriar Resort in West Virginia, so we have engaged her to teach a cooking class in May.

Stop by soon and get to know her.

As one of the newest staff members here at the Gardens, I had the privilege of picking a plant for this section of the newsletter. My choice, Ilex cornuta D’Or, commonly known as the D’Or Holly,  is part of the Aquifoliacae family and related to the ‘Burfordii’ holly.  It has blocky oval, shiny dark green leaves with a sharp spine on the tip.  White flowers bloom in the spring and decorative bright yellow berries in the fall through winter.  It boasts a large frame – 10 to 15 feet tall and just as wide.  

Its size alone would make it a great screening plant or hedge; however, there are many options available, such as espalier or pruning older specimens into a bonsai style tree form as a garden focal point.

It requires part shade to full sun and does well in Zones 7 to 9 – ranging from 4.5 to 8. Once the holly has reached the establishment period, it can deal with soil moisture variances between moist to dry. This plant is not fussy about soil structure; it can handle sites with sandy soil to mostly clay.  A standard recommendation for our area would be good drainage and the use of soil conditioner if planting in clay.

This plant is deer and rabbit resistant and can handle our heat and humidity.  Most insect issues can be handled with a systemic drench.

You can find a beautiful example of this holly right here are the Gardens, stop by and see if this plant would be perfect for your own garden.

If you would like more information about acquiring a D’Or Holly, come see me at the gardens Monday through Wednesday.

I’m embarrassed to say I was having so much fun at Smith-Gilbert Gardens’ volunteer appreciation dinner that I FORGOT to take any photos! Around 75 volunteers, staff and City Council members filled the Hiram Butler House.  The always delightful Jim Parks arranged a warm welcome by lining the driveway with luminaries.  The extraordinarily talented Graham Gold decorated all the mantels and our 10-foot tall Christmas tree.  All the decorations used by Graham were cuttings taken by Doug Davis and Shon Cameron from the Garden.  Our resident artist and former flower shop owner, Lynn Vanderhoff, rounded out the decorations with floral pieces on all the tables.

The fireplaces were lit and the dinner catered by Fusco’s Via Roma added to everyone’s contentment.  In fact, we had such a good time that we have already scheduled another volunteer dinner on Friday, April 13.  This dinner will be a potluck on the lawn if the weather allows.  (BTW – The weather is always perfect at Smith-Gilbert Gardens.)  The staff at Smith-Gilbert Gardens loves and appreciates our volunteers.  If you think you would like to join our merry band, please contact Jim Parks, our volunteer coordinator, at jparks@smithgilbertgardens.com.